Earl Smith

Genocide and human rights : a global anthology

This edition of Genocide and Human Rights marks the 20th anniversary of publication. Originally published in 1982, Genocide and Human Rights was the first anthology of its kind in genocide studies. The field has grown exponentially in the past two decades but this book is as fresh and as relevant as ever, given the times we live in. The genocides in Rwanda, Cambodia, and the former Yugoslavia and their subsequent war crime tribunals all make this book germane to todays headlines.

Social Stratification in the New/Old South: The Influences of Racial Segregation on Social Class in the Deep South

ABSTRACT The Deep South has often been characterized as the poorest and most backward region in the United States. The Deep South is also unique in that it is the most racially diverse part of the United States and it has the powerful social history of chattel slavery. In this paper, we examine the relationship between race and poverty at the macro (rather than individual) level. Using county-level census data we examine the effects of social segregation on well-being. We find that indeed there is an extremely strong and significant relationship between the racial composition of a county and many measures of well-being (poverty, home ownership, educational attainment, infant mortality and so on). Second, our analysis tests for the effects of racial segregation for whites and African Americans separately. The poverty rate for whites varies little based on the racial composition of the county they live in whereas for African Americans, living in integrated or predominately white counties is significantly correlated with lower levels of poverty. Furthermore, the African American-white poverty gap is significantly lower in integrated and predominately white counties and significantly higher in counties that are racially segregated. Thus, our analysis demonstrates that racial segregation has a more negative and profound effect on the lives of African Americans than it does on whites. We conclude with a discussion of the illustration Hurricane Katrina provides of this general pattern and we offer a set of suggestions for addressing this kind of structural poverty.

Health, Nutrition, Access to Healthy Food and Well-Being Among African Americans

It has become more or less widely accepted as common sense that nutrition is related to health and wellness and that poor nutrition and/or unhealthy eating will lead to higher rates of obesity and higher rates of chronic diseases like diabetes, stroke, heart disease, cancer, and ultimately to death. Thus, in order to move beyond the obvious, we must consider and explore the other factors that lead to or result in poor nutrition and ultimately poor health. In this chapter, we explore the role that social class plays in shaping individual access to a healthy diet, and we consider the role that social structure, particularly social and racial housing segregation, plays in shaping the access that entire populations, e.g., African Americans in urban centers, have to healthy, nutritious food. In our case study on food deserts we also examine the role that perceptions and ideologies play in shaping food choices. We begin this chapter by arguing that hegemonic ideologies that connect racial/ethnic identity and food are very powerful in shaping individuals’ food choices even in the face of common sense understandings of the importance of nutrition in leading a healthy life.

Species vs. Race

When it comes to biology, all humans are created equal. Not identical, but equal. We are all one species with one shared genome. Beginning with Galton (1909), eugenicists have made the erroneous argument that human races can be understood as human speciation in progress. Two sociological theorists, Emile Durkheim and W. I. Tomas, provide particularly valuable insights into the sociological processes that transform minimal biological diversity into profound social inequities. Te authors argue that it is possible to eradicate racism by using a reverse dominance hierarchy ritual similar to the !Kung’s. Americans create racism by ritually “othering” enemies. Examples include dehumanizing people of color in the Tree-Fifths Compromise and othering wartime enemies. Americans can eradicate racism by formally ceasing hostilities against enemy-Others—which would involve expunging the Tree-Fifths Compromise from the US Constitution.

The Farce of Race

The authors explain that race prejudices are a product of the same sort of medieval ignorance that gave rise to beliefs in vampires, werewolves and witches. Racism is founded on two false assumptions: that it is possible to clearly determine racial boundaries and qualitatively rank racial groups. Science has demonstrated that evolution is indifferent to such value judgments. Species are either fit or unfit for survival. Judging the relative value of one life form or another is an anti-scientific obsession.

Nature vs. Nurture

The authors consider the implications of the longstanding nature vs. nurture debate. Racial intolerance is often predicated on the assumption that racial differences are biological and immutable. The authors challenge those assumptions by arguing that the most important distinctions between people are sociological and are therefore modifiable. Also, historically noteworthy achievements are the result of six sociological success factors (Preparation, Adversity, Innovation, Obstinacy, Serendipity and Notoriety) rather than the innate superiority of one group or another.

A Remedy for Racism

No other species has ever introduced as much innovation into the earth’s biosphere as Homo sapiens. What makes humans unique is a special combination of biological and intellectual gifs that have made humans the most potent agents of change on planet earth. Agency is a uniquely human form of creative non-conformity. Until 1964 virulent racial prejudice determined the life chances of various racial groups in the US. Tough he encountered an unremitting headwind of racist hostility, Martin Luther King Jr. demonstrated the transformative power of human agency by dedicating himself to ending racial inequality. In so doing, he changed the course of US history.

Planet of the Super-Adaptable Apes

Humans have a capacity for agency. This means that, unlike other life forms, humans are not determined by the limitations of their environments or biology. For humans, biology is a starting point. Many people, such as Martin Luther King Jr., born into environments that are permeated by severe inequalities have refused to be defined by those onerous social constraints. It may not be a simple thing to accomplish, but motivated agents, such as MLK Jr., have demonstrated that even in the US people can fight and destroy undemocratic dominance hierarchies. Too many minds have been warped by the pathological delusion that race is real and, therefore, their destructive racist peccadilloes are justified. Still, in its endeavor to bring truth to light, science has regularly provoked hitherto unimaginable social change. If agents have proved anything, it is that, humans can change themselves and their world for the better.

What Is Excellence

Having debunked the racist argument that humans can be divided and ranked into biologically distinguishable groups, we are now in a position to return to Prof. Smith’s original question, “What is excellence?” Troughout this discussion, we have repeatedly demonstrated that humans are all equal. Not identical, but equal. Because all humans are biologically equal it would be nonsensical to argue that human excellence is a biologically-determined phenomenon. Instead, we have demonstrated that, for humans, biology is merely a starting point. It is the extraordinary achievements that humans strive to accomplish affer their biological cards have been dealt, whether favorable or unfavorable, that offers the truest measure of excellence.

Segregated Buses and Redefined Realities

As we have argued throughout this discussion, excellence is a category of exceptional achievement that humans pursue via our capacity for agency. All humans have a capacity for agency, but we don’t all choose to activate our agency to the same extent. Some people are relentlessly high achievers, while others prefer to kill time playing video games. We measure excellence by the degree to which motivated agents succeed in transcending longstanding barriers to achievement, such as surmounting Mount Everest, running a sub-four minute mile, achieving heavier-than-air aviation, or making boot prints on the moon. Te characters that history remembers most fondly are generally highly motivated agents who have also benefited from the six sociological success factors that we elaborated upon earlier: Preparation, Adversity, Innovation, Obstinacy, Serendipity, Notoriety.